The Henry Dunant Medal is the highest award of the Red Cross Movement. It is named after

Henry Dunant Henry Dunant (born Jean-Henri Dunant; 8 May 182830 October 1910), also known as Henri Dunant, was a Swiss humanitarian, businessman, and social activist. He was the visionary, promoter, and co-founder of the Red Cross. In 1901, he received the ...

, the founder of the Red Cross Movement. The medal is presented every two years by the

Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent The Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent is the permanent statutory body of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and the highest deliberative body of the Movement between the meetings of the Council of Delegates ...

. This body represents the

International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signato ...

, the

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 192-member National Societies. It acts before, during and after disas ...

and the various National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

History

In 1963, the idea of creating a medal named in honour of the founder of the International Red Cross was submitted to and approved by the Council of Delegates. This coincided with the 100th anniversary of the Red Cross. In 1965, through the generosity of the

Australian Red Cross The Australian Red Cross, formally the Australian Red Cross Society, is a humanitarian aid and community services charity in Australia. Tracing its history back to 1923 and being incorporated by royal charter in 1941, the Australian Red Cros ...

, the Henry Dunant Medal was established by the International Red Cross Conference in Vienna. The first medals were presented in 1969.

Criteria

The Henry Dunant Medal is awarded by the

. This body, representing all of the groups making up the Red Cross Movement, makes five awards of the medal every two years. These limits are placed to ensure the value and prestige of the medal as the highest honour the Red Cross Movement can bestow upon one of its members. The medal is awarded to, "recognise and reward outstanding services and acts of great devotion, mainly of international significance, to the cause of the Red Cross/Red Crescent by any of its members". The Standing Commission gives special weight to the international significance of the a potential recipients' acts or service. If the international dimension is lacking, the Commission would likely not select the individual concerned. Though their acts of service may be great, but would likely best be recognized by their National Society. Regulations still allow for the posthumous award of the medal. However, the various groups of the movement have been encouraged to create other means of recognition for those killed in service to the Red Cross. All posthumous nominations for the Henry Dunant Medal should be for, "truly exceptional cases."

Description

The Henry Dunant Medal is in the shape of a Geneva or

Greek cross The Christian cross, with or without a figure of Christ included, is the main religious symbol of Christianity. A cross with a figure of Christ affixed to it is termed a ''crucifix'' and the figure is often referred to as the ''corpus'' (La ...

. The arms of the cross are colored with red enamel. In the center of the cross is a circular bronze medallion bearing effigy of Henry Dunant, facing left. Circumscribed around the effigy are the words ''HENRY DUNANT 1828-1910''. The reverse of the medal is plain. To the top arm of the cross is attached a loop for ribbon suspension. The ribbon is depicted as either solid green, or green with red edges.

Recipients

* Pierre Tacier, 1969. First living recipient of the medal, former ICRC Delegate. *

John MacAulay John Alexander MacAulay, (May 29, 1892 – November 6, 1978) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and community volunteer from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He was a member of the Canadian Red Cross Society, as well as the International Red Cross and ...

, 1973. Chairman of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies from 1959 to 1965, first Canadian recipient. * Sai Aung Hlaing Myint, 1977. A member of Myanmar Red Cross Society, for saving a soldier whose car fell into the Ayeyarwady River which was icy cold at that time . *Dr. Abdul Aziz Mudarris, 1983. Established the Saudi Red Crescent in 1962, he was the first President of the Saudi Red Crescent * Joseph Adefarasin, 1987. Former President of the Red Cross League, first Nigerian recipient. * J. Edwin Lloyd, 19xx, Liberian clergyman, former president of the Liberian National Red Cross Society (1986-1989) *Dr. Ahmad Abu Goura, 1993. President of the Jordanian Red Crescent Society from 1964 to 1993. * Phlech Phiroun, 2001. Former President of the Cambodian Red Cross. * Roger Durand, 2001. Founder and president of the Henry Dunant Society and former Vice-president of the Geneva Red Cross. * Monique Basque, 2003. Former President of the Red Cross of Côte d'Ivoire * Frits Kalshoven, 2003. Legal scholar and a specialist in International Humanitarian Law *

André Durand André Durand (born 1947 in Ottawa, Ontario) is a Canadian painter working in the European Hermetic tradition. He is influenced by artists such as Rubens, Titian, Michelangelo and Velázquez. Although Durand is perhaps best known for his al ...

, 2003. Former ICRC field delegate and author of a history of the ICRC and the Movement * Noreen Minogue, 2003. Former deputy Secretary General of the Australian Red Cross and promoter of International Humanitarian Law *In 2005, the volunteers and staff of the Red Cross Societies of the four countries most severely affected by the devastating tsunami of 26 December 2004—India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand *General

Bjørn Egge Bjørn Egge CBE (19 August 1918 – 25 July 2007) was a Major General of the Norwegian Army and President of the Norwegian Red Cross (1981–1987). He served as deputy head of the NATO Defence College (1976–1980). Egge was a soldier during th ...

, 2005. Former President of the Norwegian Red Cross. *

Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson, (''Christina Louise Helena'', born 3 August 1943) is the youngest of the four older sisters of Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. She generally uses the name Christina Magnuson. Early l ...

, 2005. Former President of the

Swedish Red Cross The Swedish Red Cross (Swedish: ''Svenska Röda Korset'') is a Swedish humanitarian organisation and a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Founded in 1865, its purpose is to prevent and alleviate human suffering where ...

and member of the Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent *Colonel Dr. Mekonnen Muluneh, 2005. Of the

Ethiopian Red Cross Society The Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS) ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ቀይ መስቀል ማህበር) is a health facility in Ethiopia. It was founded and recognized by the ICRC The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité ...

. *Dr.

Jean Pictet Jean Simon Pictet (2 September 1914, Geneva – 30 March 2002, Meyrin) was a Swiss citizen, jurist, legal practitioner working in international humanitarian law. First as a secretary-jurist, and then as a senior executive and Vice-President of the ...

, 2005 (posthumously). Main architect of the

Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, Original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. The singular term ''Geneva Conven ...

of 1949 and former Vice-President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). * James Joseph Carlton, 2007. Former secretary general of the

and Australian Minister of Health from 1982 to 1983. * Christoph Hensch, 2007. Former ICRC delegate and survivor of the attack on the Red Cross hospital in the Chechen town of

Novye Atagi Novye Atagi (russian: Но́вые Атаги́: ce, Жима АтагӀа, ''Ƶima Ataġa'') is a rural locality (a '' selo'') in Shalinsky District of the Chechen Republic, Russia, located south of Grozny Grozny ( rus, Грозный, ...

, in 1996. * Alexander Dumba Ika, 2007. Former head of the Congolese Red Cross tracing service in Ituri and head of the ICRC delegation in

Bunia Bunia is the capital city of Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It was part of the Orientale Province until that province's dissolution. It lies at an elevation of on a plateau about west of Lake Albert in the Albe ...

. * Josiane Gabel, 2007. Former

French Red Cross The French Red Cross (french: Croix-Rouge française), or the CRF, is the national Red Cross Society in France founded in 1864 and originally known as the ''Société française de secours aux blessés militaires'' (SSBM). Recognized as a public u ...

delegate in Congo and in

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...

and National First Aid Director of the

Red Cross of Chad The Red Cross of Chad (french: Croix Rouge du Tchad) was founded in 1983. It has its headquarters in N’Djamena, Chad. In 2018, CRC trainers collaborated with international researchers from LFR International to create a lay first responder progra ...

* Datuk Datin Paduka Ruby Lee, 2009. Former

Malaysian Red Crescent Society The Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS) ( ms, Bulan Sabit Merah Malaysia (BSMM)) is a voluntary humanitarian organization that seeks to promote humanitarian values, as well as provide service and public education in disaster management, as we ...

secretary-general. * Shimelis Adugna, 2011. Former president of the Ethiopian Red Cross and former minister of labour and social affairs of Ethiopia. *

Astrid Nøklebye Heiberg Astrid Nøklebye Heiberg (14 April 1936 – 2 April 2020) was a Norway, Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party of Norway, Conservative Party, and a professor of medicine. She was the state secretary to the Minister of Social Affairs 1981 ...

, 2011. Former president of the

Norwegian Red Cross The Norwegian Red Cross (''Norges Røde Kors'') was founded on 22 September 1865 by prime minister Frederik Stang. In 1895 the Norwegian Red Cross began educating nurses, and in 1907 the Norwegian Ministry of Defence authorized the organization fo ...

and former president of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. * Barges Hamoud Al-Barges, 2013. Founding member and former president of the Kuwait Red Crescent Society. *

Alberto Cairo Alberto Cairo (born 1974 in A Coruña) is a Spanish information designer and professor. Cairo is the Knight Chair in Visual Journalism at the School of Communication of the University of Miami. Education Cairo holds a BA in Journalism from the Un ...

, 2013. A member of the Italian Red Cross, he has worked in Afghanistan continuously since 1990 (except for a short mission in Sarajevo in 1993), running a network of orthopedic centers since 1994. * Tom Buruku, 2013. Former chairman of the

Uganda Red Cross Society Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) was founded in 1962 and previously it was part of the British Red Cross. It has its headquarters in Kampala. The Uganda Red Cross the biggest indigenous humanitarian organization in Uganda. History of the Uganda R ...

and a founding member of the New Partnership for African Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (NEPARC). * Doña Meneca de Mencía, 2013. Former president of the Honduran Red Cross and former chair of the Inter-American Regional Committee.

References

{{reflist

External links

List of winners
Medals of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement Henry Dunant Awards established in 1969 Humanitarian and service awards